Watch

ABSTRACT

This quartz crystal electronic watch eliminates watch parts formerly highly vulnerable to shock, but the quartz crystal assembly itself has high vulnerability to shock. This inventor determined that the quartz crystals resistance to shock is relatively high in all but one of its directions, and the cushioning effect of the watch&#39;&#39;s external parts is relatively high in all but one of the directions, and he produced an overall highly shock-resistant watch by orienting the quartz crystal&#39;&#39;s direction of maximum resistance to shock in the watch&#39;&#39;s direction of least cushioning.

1 1 Oct. 22, 1974 United States Patent 1191 Lupoli WATCH [75] Inventor:Peter John Lupoli, Hamden, Conn.

[73] Assignee: Benrus Corporation, Ridgeficld,

Conn.

[22] Filed: May 22, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 362,736

[52] US. Cl. 58/23 R, 58/23 A, 58/23 V, 58/55. 58/91 [51] Int. Cl. G04c3/00, G04b 37/00 [58} Field of Search... 58/23 R, 23 AC, 23 A, 23 V,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3 69l.753 9/1972 Kurita58/23 R 3.733.803 5/1973 Hiraga 58/23 R 32,7ee. H2

QUARTZ OSCILLATOR l8 STAGE COUNT DOWN j guuuu 3,737,746 6/l973 Ciclaszykct al. 58/23 AC Primary ExaminerEdith Simmons Jackmon Attorney, Agent,or FirmH. Gordon Dyke [5 7] ABSTRACT This quartz crystal electronicwatch eliminates watch parts formerly highly vulnerable to shock, butthe quartz crystal assembly itself has high vulnerability to shock. Thisinventor determined that the quartz crystals resistance to shock isrelatively high in all but one of its directions, and the cushioningeffect of the watchs external parts is relatively high in all but one otthe directions, and he produced an overall highly shock-resistant watchby orienting the quartz Crystal's direction of maximum resistance toshock in the watchs direction of least cushioning.

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WATCH This invention is an improvement in quartz crystal Wristwatchesthat makes them more shock resistant.

In the quartz crystal watch the delicate and vulnerable balance wheel isno longer present, together with it now appears that the quartz crystaland its support assembly constitute the most vulnerable component andwill be the limiting factor in the watchs shock resistance. I postulatethat by one particular choice of placement of one particular form ofthis new component I can make my quartz crystal watch more highly shockresistant.

The quartz crystal may be installed in the watch with any orientationand any rotational position about its axis. Among all thesepossibilities some of the choices are obvious, some are not. Since awatch is thin, the long dimension of the quartz crystal should lie inthe general plane of the watch. Since the leads are normally arrangedcoming out the bottom of the quartz crystal housing, its rotationalposition should be with its bottom surface on the base it is mounted on.

The foregoing leaves still an open choice of orientation within thegeneral plane of the watch. Because of lengthwise symmetry of the quartzcrystal unit this choice narrows in practice to a range of 180.

I have found that I can make my watch almost twice as shock resistant byorienting the quartz crystal unit within and preferably within 5, ofparallelism with the watch stern, for reasons that will be developed.The choice I make is within (preferably 10) out of 180, or one specificpart in 9 (preferably. one specific part in 18.) By choosing thisparticular limited range of orientation I am able to make a moreshock-resistant watch without any significant penalty for thatachievement, in cost, size, appearance, or otherwise.

Essentially what I have done is to match the sturdiest orientation ofthe quartz crystal with that orientation of the watch in which greatestshock is transmitted. Stated conversely, I arrange the more vulnerableorientations of the quartz crystal so they coincide with theorientations of the watch assembly that provide the greater cushioning,giving them little or no component of orientation in that directionwhich can experience the most shock.

Basically the configuration I arrive at is first to choose a quartzcrystal unit with supports made of a somewhat resilient alloy, so thosesupports can when shocked flex within their elastic limits and thenreturn to their original position, and then to mount the quartz crystalwith its longest dimension parallel to the stem axis of the wrist watch,and preferably extending from 7:30 to 4:30.

I mount the housed quartz crystal on the upper side of a somewhatresilient insulator board made of plastic reinforced with glass fiberwith the base of the quartz crystal housing directly on this board andthe leads extending through it. I also mounted the trimming capacitor,the circuit chip and the stepping motor on the upper side of that board,and I position the battery so it projects through a cut-out portion ofthe board. When I have thus arranged the quartz crystal, butspecifically so it has its long dimension generally parallel to thewatch stem and more specifically extending along the 4:30 to 7:30 lineof the watch, I then am able to mount the other components optimally ornearoptimally for their several requirements.

The net result is a practical configuration of components that moreoveras previously stated gives notably enhanced shock resistance, this beingadvantageous to both consumer and to manufacturer.

It will be understood that probability statistics are involved in thisapproach, the goal being to to design the watch so that if a largenumber of them were dropped, from a given height greater than heretoforetolerated, with the orientations random, fewer of them by far would havetheir time-keeping ability impaired than would be the result withoutthis special configuration.

The drawings illustrate an embodiment of my invention.

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic view of a quartz crystal watch system such asmine.

FIGS. 2-4 show the quartz crystal, its mounting, and its housing,

FIG. 2 being a side view with the housing in vertical section,

FIG. 3 a top view with the housing in horizontal section, and

FIG. 4 an end view with the housing in vertical cross section.

FIG. 5 is a top view of the watch assembly, including its band.

FIG. 6 is a perspective of a watch with a strap.

FIGS. 7A through 7F are diagrammatic views representing the sum of thepossible orientations of fall of the watch and indicating relativeextent of cushioning when the watch falls in the various orientations.

FIG. 7A represents the watch landing on its bottom,

FIG. FIG. FIG. FIG.

FIG. 9 is a view of the bottom side of the board.

FIG. 10-12 are side views of the works of the watch, removed from thecase,

FIG. 10 as seen from 3 oclock,

FIG. 11 as seen from 11 oclock, and

FIG. 12 as seen from 6 oclock.

The diagrammatic layout of Fig. 2 illustrates the principle of thequartz crystal watch. A quartz crystal in a suitable oscillator circuitgenerates the frequency it is cut for, in this case 32,768 Hz (cyclesper second). A trimming capacitor in this circuit makes it possible toadjust the frequency to remove any error, within moderate limits. Theoutput of this oscillator system is fed to a series of dividers, whichreduce the signal--by successive haIvings--to one pulse each halfsecond. Physically the trimming capacitor is one unit, while theoscillator circuit and divider circuits are on a circuit chip which isanother physical unit.

The one-per-half-second pulses are fed to a stepping motor whose shaftbears a small gear wheel and thus starts the train of gears that drivesthe stepping second hand (which makes one step per second), the minutehand, the hour hand, and the day and date rings.

The balance wheel was formerly the component most easily damaged byshock. In the quartz crystal watch there is no balance wheel. Thestepping motor can be and is made fairly rugged in relation to itsweight, and it is so mounted that its shaft has some free lengthwisescope of movement. As a result, it is not the quartz crystal that is themost delicate and vulnerable component of the watch.

FIGS. 2 through 4 show the quartz crystal, its mounting, and itshousing.

The quartz crystal has dimensions of the order of the following: length0.642 inch, height 0.060 inch, and thickness 0.012 inch. It and itssupports and housing are sometimes referred to as the quartz crystalunit or the quartz crystal assembly. The crystal is, and must be, out ofcontact with any objects that would resist its vibrations, and wellshielded against factors that could affect the capacitance of theoscillator circuit, of which it is part. It may move when subjected toinfrequent shock, but it must return to its original position to avoidcapacitance change and resultant rate change. Also no permanentdistortion of the supports can remain, else they change the capacitanceand/or put strains into the crystal that can affect its rate.

The crystal is part of an assembly 11 that includes a can 12 having abase 13, reinforcing floor 14, and a case 15 which is like a miniatureinverted tub constituting top, side, and end, walls. The base and floorhave a pair of holes 18 in them through which extend two Kovar leadwires 20, about 0.018 inch in diameter. Glass insulation 22 surroundsthe lead wires within those holes and separates them electrically fromthe metal base and floor.

Each lead wire terminates at its top end in a metal cross-bar 24 securedto it, atop the insulation 22. The cross-bar bears two spaced supports26, which also serve electrically as bifurcated continuations of theleads. These two pairs of supports have arm portions that extend up,spaced somewhat out from the two faces of the quartz crystal, and wristportions that turn in and end at the faces of the crystal, to which theyare soldered. The crystal and the supports have clearance from theinside surface of the tub in all directions. The wrist portions of thesupports 26 are about half the length of the arm portions. The supports26 are about 0.0035 inch in diameter, and are made of phosphorbronzewire, gold plated. Thus they can absorb some deceleration resilientlywithout breaking, and then return to original position without retaineddistortion. This will be true whether the supports are of uniformheights as shown or are staggered in height.

The quartz crystal housing is attached to an insulation board 28, about0.015 inch thick and made of plastic reinforced with glass fibers. Theattachment is by passing the leads through holes 30 in the plasticboard. These leads are about 0.044 inch in diameter. Their ends thatextend through the board are there soldered as seen in FIG. 9, thussecuring the quartz crystal unit to the board.

ORIENTATION OF THE CRYSTAL The quartz crystal unit could be suddenlydecelerated along any of its three mutually perpendicular axes. Itsability to withstand damage to its time keeping ability is quitedifferent for the three axes.

Should it fall with the base down the supports will act as stiff postsplaced under lengthwise compression. Nearly the full force of the shockwill be felt tending to rip the soldered ends of the supports loose fromthe crystal. The only way the shorter wrist portions can accomodate isby bending and if they do that they make matters worse by placing aconcentrated parting force at their leading edges, which concentratedforce can move along as a wave as the soldering to the faces of thecrystal progressively parts. The result of sudden deceleration in theopposite direction is much the same, substituting tension of thepost-like supports for compression.

Should the quartz crystal unit fall with either side face down the mainlengths of the supports can bend, but the pairs of supports will tend togo from their approximately square configuration into parallelograms.The wrist lengths will experience force in opposite directions, one in,and one out. This will apply a twist to the crystal, tending to peel thesoldered elbow-piece joints off progressively. Torsion cannot relievethese forces.

Should the unit fall lengthwise of the crystal and land end-down it hasbetter resistance to the shock. The main uprights of the supports canflex along their lengths. Moreover the stress on the soldered joints isrotary and so entire rather than progressive, wherefore the yield pointis higher, and this stress can be relieved by torsion in the wrists andbending in the arms.

Thus the quartz crystal unit is more vulnerable to falls in which itlands top or bottom down or either side down, and it will safelywithstand more shock when it lands with either end down. This advantageto landing this way is only partial when the crystal is angled off fromthe angle of arrival. The advantage is considerable when the crystalsorientation is within 10 of the axis of impact, better--andpreferred--when within 5, and optimum when the two directions coincide.

ORIENTATION OF THE WATCH CASE Let us now consider the exterior of thewatch--its case and band--and determine comparative cushioning in itsdifferent orientations of landing.

The watch assembly could fall and hit the floor in any orientation. Thesum of all its possible orientations makes a sphere. This sphere can bedivided into six equal quadrilaterals which together make up the entirespherical surface. This enables me to analyze and portray the differentdegrees of shock that the watch assembly will experience in falling withall its various possible orientations. We can think of the watchassembly having been fixed in an imaginary sphere which is then viewedfrom six different sides. Token miniature representations of the watchcase illustrate its orientation of fall for each of the six views. Theshading indicates cushioning.

Wristwatches are dropped far more often with their strap or bandattached than without. Thus we can consider primarily the configurationof the watch assembly that includes its leather-type strap or metalband. There will be differences as between strap and band, with the bandusually giving more protection, but statistically the differencesbetween strap and band will be more in degree than in kind. Thus muchthe same comparative exposure to shock as between the variousorientations will hold for both types of wristlet.

In considering comparative exposure to shock it must be kept in mindthat even a small cushioning effect can considerably reduce the numberof gs experienced within the watch.

FIGS. 7A-7F illustrate gualitatively the comparative exposure to shockfor all orientations of the watch assembly, shading indicatingcushioning.

FIG. 7A represents the watch as falling on its back, face up. In thegreat majority of times that the watch assembly falls this way the bandor strap will break its fall and somewhat cushion the watch from shock.

FIG. 78 represents the watch as landing on its left side. For a fallsquarely in this orientation (represented by the center area of 3B) thewatch case has nothing to cushion it, and full shock is experienced. Thestrap or band gives some cushioning at the top and bottom and theextreme right of this sector, but nothing cushions the fall for the restof this sector.

FIG. 7C represents the watch as landing on its right side. Here thestrap or band will give some cushioning at the edges of this sector, asin FIG. 78. Also the crown and stem (located along the line from centerthrough 3 oclock) will absorb some of the shock, being damagedthemselves in the process if the fall is hard enough, but not therebyimpairing the timekeeping heart of the watch. Since this cushioning isonly partial the shading lines are farther apart.

FIG. 7D represents the watch as landing on its top, or far, edge. Herethe band or strap will almost always provide cushioning.

FIG. 7F represents the watch as landing on its face, which means landingon its crystal. The preferred form of my watch includes a resilientplastic crystal 48, which will cushion this fall. Even in theless-preferred form having a glass crystal, in the case of a severelanding the crystal in breaking will absorb some of the shock, therebylessening the shock felt by the works within the case.

RELATION BETWEEN THE ORIENTATIONS With the foregoing informationdeveloped on vulnerability of quartz crystal unit vs. orientation, andcushioning of the shock of fall vs. angle of arrival, I elect to orientthe quartz crystal within the watch with its axis of greatest ability tosafely withstand sudden deceleration oriented parallel with that axis ofthe watch in which the exposure to shock is the greatest. In otherwords, I place an axis of the quartz crystal that has highest ability toresist shock in that orientation of the wristwatch assembly which is aptto experience the most shock. Conversely stated, I make the fourdirections of orientation of the quartz crystal that are the mostvulnerable to shock coincide with the four directions of orientation offall of the wristwatch assembly that are more cushioned from shock thanare the other pair.

RELATIVE POSITIONING OF PARTS Under the face plate 31 of my watch iswhat may be called a frame plate 32, namely a rugged structure made upof a plurality of members that are discs with portions removed, thesemembers being joined flat to each other in a rigid manner. Together theyform support for the various portions of the gear train and relatedparts of the watch.

Posts 34 depend from this frame plate and at their ends they support andsecure the insulation board 28 which was previously mentioned. Theseposts are long enough that the board is held spaced somewhat away fromthe frame plate and the mechanisms which it directly carries. Thisleaves a space for components to be located.

In this space, on the upper side of the board, I mount the quartzcrystal assembly 11. FIG. 8 is a plan view of the board and componentsmounted on it, looking down on the upper face of the board with the faceplate and frame plate having been lifted off of it. The stem 36 andcrown 38 are shown in their 3 oclock relation. If the face plate withits hour numerals were present here its 12 would show at the top, 3 atthe right. 6 at the bottom, and 9 at the left. It will be seen that Ihave mounted my quartz crystal unit parallel to the 9 3 direction of theboard, which is also parallel to the stem. This places the quartzcrystals axis of greatest ability to withstand shock pointing in thesame direction as that in which the wristwatch assembly is apt toexperience the greatest shock.

More specifically I mount my quartz crystal unit along under the 7:304:30 line. This still gives me the desired orientation in relation toshock exposure, and it also facilitates favorable mounting of the othercomponents.

I wish to mount the circuit ship 40 close to the crystal assembly 11because both contain parts of the oscillator circuit, and I wish tomount the adjustable capacitor 42 close to one and preferably bothbecause it too is part of the oscillator circuit. An adjusting rotor 43for the capacitor is visible at the underneath face of the board (seeFIG. 9). In my preferred arrangement I mount the circuit chip and thecapacitor between the quartz crystal and the 9:00 3:00 line.

This allows me to devote the 9:00 12:00 sector to the replaceablebattery 44, for which the insulation board is cut out in this sector.Then I can still mount the stepping motor 46 between 12:00 and 2:00,leaving room at 2:00 to 3:00 for the hacking mechanism (not shown),which needs to be closely associated with the stem 36, which is at itsclassic optimum position of 3:00. With this combination I prefer tomount the posts 34, which support the board from the frame plate, one ata little past 1:00 and the other at a little before 7:00. Consideringthe cut-out for the battery and the components mounted on the board,this gives approximate balance across the line joining the posts.

Thus there is achieved an optimum or near optimum relation inpositioning the components at the same time that the quartz crystalassembly is mounted in the one orientation that gives the watch greatershock resistance than with any other orientation of the quartz crystal.

I claim:

1. Shock resistant wrist watch having upper and lower generallyhorizontal faces, said watch having a crystal over its upper face, strapfasteners at its far and near edges for securing a wristlet that willextend below the plane of its lower face, whereby said watch has highprobability of some cushioning against impact when it falls in all solidangle orientations except the solid angle nearest the transversehorizontal axis, said watch having a quartz crystal frequency generator,said quartz crystal having its greatest dimension disposed substantiallyparallel to the watchs transverse horizontal axis, and said quartzcrystal being supported by fine resilient metal lead wires, said leadwires comprising arms and wrists angled relative to each other and boththe arms and the wrists lying substantially in a plane perpendicular tothe transverse horizontal axis of the watch, the

8 vulnerable orientation of the quartz crystal assembly coincides withthat orientation of the watch that is externally least protected fromshock.

1. Shock resistant wrist watch having upper and lower generallyhorizontal faces, said watch having a crystal over its upper face, strapfasteners at its far and near edges for securing a wristlet that willextend below the plane of its lower face, whereby said watch has highprobability of some cushioning against impact when it falls in all solidangle orientations except the solid angle nearest the transversehorizontal axis, said watch having a quartz crystal frequency generator,said quartz crystal having its greatest dimension disposed substantiallyparallel to the watch''s transverse horizontal axis, and said quartzcrystal being supported by fine resilient metal lead wires, said leadwires comprising arms and wrists angled relative to each other and boththe arms and the wrists lying substantially in a plane perpendicular tothe transverse horizontal axis of the watch, the arms beingsubstantially parallel to each other, and the wrists meeting the quartzcrystal substantially perpendicular to its opposite side faces andterminating in butt joints securing the wrists to said faces, therelative orientations of the recited parts being such that the leastvulnerable orientation of the quartz crystal assembly coincides withthat orientation of the watch that is externally least protected fromshock.